Letters / Our faith and our politics are intertwined
Today I woke up and one of my first thoughts was the fact I knew my postal vote for the Scottish Election needed filling in. It has sat on the table for a while. Normally it’s easy. I have voted for the same party since that moment as a teenager I was allowed to vote.
I believe life matters. All life. My political and religious views are one and the same. The Church I am a member of has over one billion members worldwide. It matters to me. I am committed to it and to the Interfaith movement. All faiths matter. Respect matters. Being able to practice my faith is not one I take for granted as for many throughout the world that is absolutely not the case.
I have been active throughout my adult life in justice and peace, including the Iona Community and Amnesty International as well as many other charities.
I believe in equality, fairness, freedom from fear and a right to live safely without fear from war. Looking on social media or watching the news for just a brief time shows us how so many live in very different circumstances.
In the last few years, it seems more people I know are searching for understanding. Wanting to find something that gives meaning and understanding. Having been always active in the church their experience is different to mine. The church has always been in my life, and I know no other way to be. Not that it’s just a routine or a habit. It’s a choice. Everyday.
Pope Francis and Pope Leo have spoken out actively and loudly to a world’s audience and not just to the billion Catholics who sit on pews. They have reached folk whose curiosity has resulted in them entering our churches and becoming Catholic. The numbers of adults being welcomed formally into the Church on Easter Sunday has been huge.
Pope Leo as the first American Pope has spoken without fear against world leaders who do not have peace and justice at the heart of their policies.
He has had many hateful comments directed at him in return and told by the media in the States to keep out of politics! Some people clearly do believe we ought to keep religion out of politics. But for religious people of all faiths, our faith and our politics are intertwined.
So back to my vote this year.
Our Scottish Parliament has recently for the third time, voted against assisted suicide; a bill I have a strong opinion about.
Life is life. Many charities, faith groups and individuals expressed to their MSP to please vote against the bill. Many charities for people living with disabilities or mental health difficulties. The College of Psychiatrists in Scotland, the pharmacist’s professional body, women’s charities and many more were all against the bill. Me too. So for a third time it failed to pass.
I wrote to MP Alistair Carmichael to discuss the UK bill. He responded and we met and for an hour we talked but our differences were unreconcilable. But we met and he listened. I have never voted for his party but as my MP I needed him to know my thoughts and the reasons for them.
Over the years I have been active in local politics, in the local branches where I have been living. I have canvassed for local and national elections. I have stood at stalls at country shows. I have been active nationally in advisory groups for the party I have voted for. I was involved in the restructuring of the disabled members group of the party I remain a member of.
The First Minister, senior members of the party and our MSP who is on the list for the Highlands and Islands, who all represent the party that I am a member of all hold the same opinion as me.
But the candidate of the party standing for Shetland has said, more than once, she is for assisted suicide. You may use the expression ‘assisted death’ but for me that is not what it is; it is suicide.
As I have said politics and my faith matter. I have tried to ask myself lots of questions about this election. Why I have chosen to not be active in the campaign. Why is it all so painful?
It’s easy really. Life matters. My three daughters all work in the NHS and never would I want them to be asked to assist in the death of a patient. It’s wrong as far as I and many other people believe.
So how can I vote for a candidate who would sit in Holyrood and if this debate comes around again, vote yes on behalf of the people of Shetland. I can’t.
This year our church asked us to fill in an online information sheet if we knew the beliefs of those standing in our area on two subjects – assisted suicide and abortion. As a pretty well-informed person and someone who has attended hustings all my adult life, I knew the views are of some of the eight candidates. Not them all.
So, I wrote to the six who were listed with email addresses on the Catholic Website. The Conservative and the Reform candidates had no known email addresses.
These are parties that I would not consider for a second, so I didn’t go out of my way to find email addresses. However, I did write to the other six candidates. This was last week. Not one of the six answered my email. Shocking really.
So today I got out my postal vote. Filled in the part for the list MSP. The easy one. The second one for the Shetland MSP I felt the only choice I had was to waste the vote, so I put a giant cross across the page.
Never, in my life, did I think this would ever be something I would do and if I lived elsewhere not something I would have done.
But life is life. I want ill patients to receive care and medical treatment. I want those dying to have dignity. I want their loved ones to be supported. I don’t want our doctors and nurses to help people die.
My three daughters went into healthcare to look after the ill. To care for the dying. Whatever age. Whatever the cause of death. Whatever faith or none. Whatever gender or race. I have chatted to a lot of my friends in the political party that has been a big part of my life.
I have chatted with previous First Ministers and cabinet ministers. I have thought long and hard.
So much of what people believe can be tricky for others to understand. Sometimes people put us into pigeon boxes and think, oh they will think that or want that. But some of our most deep views are so much a part of us. So held within us for so long. Sometimes we don’t question them. Until we do.
Last week was International Workers Memorial Day. A day honoured in many countries around the world. I was invited by the STUC to come to the event in Glasgow and be a guest speaker. I work as a Volunteer for the Charity Scottish Hazards. I do that for I faced death as an eight year old when my dad died at James Watt Street. I was honoured to be invited. It was powerful and deeply emotional. To stand in front of almost 100 political activist and talk was just a little scary.
Because of my dad’s murder as a 36 year old father of four I became political. My first letters to the local paper were about Trident on the Clyde. Over the years about apartheid, the miner’s strike, poll tax, Free Nelson Mandela, and many more up until more recently about Ukraine and Palestine.
Being active politically is so important. I do think though we have to try and understand other people’s views with respect and understanding.
We can only vote in this election for one candidate for Shetland and I am deeply saddened I chose after much reflection not to. I hope I am never faced with this again. Voting is a right and something I take seriously.
I hope over next couple of days polite comment only is made. I hope Shetland gets the best candidate. The list system I believe is helpful, in that whoever wins the Shetland seat, we as individuals can contact list MSPs to discuss issues too.
I admire the fact for the UK election Alistair Carmichael found time and listened. We don’t agree but it is the job of both our MP and our MSP to represent all of us, regardless of our political views.
I hope we get a good turnout at the vote on Thursday.
Joyce Davies
Scalloway
